A White lie?

Is it permissible for a public servant to tell a white lie?

If you ask a child what a white lie is; you will find that
"small" lies are white lies. If you lie about stealing a piece
of gum, it is a white lie.

And they are wrong.

According to the standard of conduct that the leadership
of the APS enforces upon 89,000 of our sons and daughters;

a white lie is a "lie" that can be ethically justified.

On the order of; "lying" to your grandmother about how
much you enjoyed her pumpkin pie.

The test;
again according to the APS Student Standard of Conduct
If the person to whom you lied, finds out about the lie,
would they feel you had lied in their best interest.

Clearly, we are talking about a different standard of conduct than "the law".

A white lie, under the law, is pretty much any thing your
lawyers are willing to litigate; and they are willing to
litigate any thing.

Which bring us to;

Should public servants be held accountable to
a higher standard of conduct than the law; the lowest
acceptable standard of conduct in our society?

Because public service is smothered in direct references
to accountability to a higher standard of conduct,

most people believe that public servants are accountable
to a higher standard of conduct than the law.

They are not.

Under the law, APS and Modrall cannot be compelled to obey
the law which requires them to

"... discharge ETHICALLY
the high responsibilities of public service."
New Mexico State Statute 10-16-b-3

Should we hold public servants accountable to a higher
standard of conduct than the law?

I would argue yes.

Because we are required to trust them.

If they are asking for our trust, we are entitled to hold
them accountable, at the very least, to a standard of
conduct that requires trustworthiness.

The leadership of the APS will not hold themselves
accountable to a standard of conduct that requires
trustworthiness.

If they could actually be held honestly accountable
to a standard of conduct that required trustworthiness,

we would be able to hold them accountable for being
untrustworthy;

• by refusing to answer legitimate questions about the
  public interests and about their public service, and
• by refusing to begin an impartial full scale audit of the
  administration of the public trust and treasure
  by the leadership of the APS, and
• by their steadfast and unrelenting refusal do be candid,
  forthright, and honest with stakeholders,
  in any form of town hall meeting.

We cannot hold them accountable to any standard of
conduct that requires trustworthiness,
and which provides honest accountability for untrustworthiness.

The leadership of the APS in unaccountable to any standard
of conduct at all, except under circumstances that they
control.


We could hold them accountable personally,
but only by a large enough demonstration.

There is some number of people, which if they demanded
in person, an immediate full scale audit of the entire APS,

they would see their demand met.


If you think an audit is in your interests,
you will need to defend your interests.

There is a need for you to stand up for what you believe in.

You can do that by participating in a demonstration
coincident with the next school board public forum;
Wednesday, August 6, 2008, at 5pm.

In the million dollar Susie Rayos Marmon Boardroom
that your tax dollars bought.

And in the administrative offices at 6400 Uptown Blvd.

You should see what they done with the place.


The more people that participate in the demonstration
the more likely it is that there will be an audit
that will end corruption and incompetence in the
administration of the APS.

There is no legitimate agenda that does not move forward
on the day that the audit begins.

It is a threat only to the corrupt and the incompetent
in the leadership of the APS.

They win if you do nothing.

I am not saying these people are evil,
but when Edmund Burke wrote;

"All that is necessary for evil to prevail in the world,
is for good men to do nothing."

these are the people he was writing about.

You can do nothing;
or you can at the very least, go to the meeting.